The present invention relates generally to gardening apparatus and particularly to a garden hose spout.
Garden hose spouts, or nozzles, differ in cost, complexity and capability. A common garden hose nozzle is a spray gun which attaches to a garden hose and includes a handle and opposing trigger. A user grasps the handle and moves the trigger with one hand to control the volume and spray pattern of water exiting the nozzle. This form of garden hose nozzle provides convenient control, but necessarily includes mechanisms for coupling the trigger to a valve and structural elements forming the handle and trigger. These features contribute to manufacturing cost and complexity of the device.
A second type of garden hose nozzle has an outer sleeve which rotates to control the volume and spray pattern of water exiting the nozzle. The operator uses both hands to control the sleeve type nozzle. The sleeve type nozzle is less complex, but also less convenient than the spray gun type.
A third type of nozzle is a perforated can connectable to a garden hose. Water enters the can from the hose and escapes through the perforations in a multi-stream spray pattern. While simple and inexpensive to produce, the can-type garden hose nozzle offers little control over water flow.
A fourth type of garden hose nozzle is a rigid cone shaped conduit providing a small volume, high velocity output stream with no volume or spray pattern adjustability.
Thus, complex relatively expensive garden hose nozzles provide convenient control over water flow. Less complex, less expensive garden hose nozzles do not provide convenient control. Accordingly, it is desirable for a less complex or less expensive garden hose nozzle to provide convenient and precise control over water flow.